Mr Putin was informed immediately about the crash of Tu-154 (Sibir Airlines) aircraft over the Black Sea near Novorossiisk, and issued immediate instructions to the Defence Ministry and the Emergency Situations Ministry on search-and-rescue works.
Mr Putin appointed Security Council Secretary Vladimir Rushailo the head of the air crash investigation commission, and also summoned to the Kremlin Federal Security Service Director Nikolai Patrushev and Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov, who briefed the President on the disaster and progress of search-and-rescue operations.
The plane performing a flight from Tel-Aviv to Novosibirsk with 77 passengers onboard crashed into the neutral waters at approximately 1:35 pm Moscow time 180 km south of Novorossiisk. The sea there is about 1 km deep.